Darkness With No Dawn
by xXLooney-chanXx
Summary: Full summary inside. Basically how New Moon would have went if Bella had a spine and/or any shred of dignity.
1. Chapter 1

**Darkness With No Dawn **

**This is a little story I decided to write simply because I thought Bella was PATHETIC in New Moon, and so I decided to write my own version, starting from the top. There is no pairing, but I may decide to make it Bella/Jacob…I don't know. This is really a spur of the moment story…Hope you enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. **

**Chapter 1: What the…?**

It was a beautifully rainy day in Forks, Washington. Not that it mattered anyway, cuz Edward can't come out in the sun. Oh Edward, my Edward how perfect you are! You're perfect from your perfectly tousled brown hair to your perfect designer shoes! Oh my Edward! (AN: Yes ppl, I _am_ mocking Bella.)

Now this day at school would be perfect, were it not mauled by the fact that it's my birthday. I can barely say the word in my mind without grimacing or mentally sneering the word. Ugh. Curse you Father Time! Why can't I stay young like Edward? Oh well.

So today Alice was seriously on my case about…birthday things. Like…oh Hell, I don't know, I really truly was trying to tune it all out. Maybe if I just tune everything out for a while tomorrow will come faster.

Using this method, I only managed to pick up the fact that Alice is throwing me a party. Craaap. I hate parties, but I couldn't stop her if I tried. I just focused on Edward…

*Fast forward*

Everything was so…green! It was a lot more bearable than I thought. I'm not giving into liking this idea, but I can't help but love my favorite color everywhere! The cake was right out of a magazine…I mean seriously, it was so cool. I wonder who was going to eat all of it, cuz I sure as sunshine am not going to gain _that_ ten pounds…not that Edward would care. I waltzed down the staircase with ease and leisure, for this was the one moment of the day that I wanted to preserve. Until…I tripped. Clumsy me, huh? My darling Edward caught me though.

I got downstairs quite embarrassingly after my little birthday stumble…I mean I know they don't care, but come on! They already had the vampire thing on me; anything else was just ridiculous. I received their presents with grace and dignity, for once in my life huh? Just when I thought that everything was perfect and that I was going to have the best (and hopefully last) birthday of my life, I got a freaking paper-cut. No big deal, right? Wrong. I somehow missed this, and began idly sucking on my finger when Edward screamed. I had only ever heard the sound of his distress once, and I never wanted to hear it again. I looked up in panic, and saw…Jasper. A whole lotta Jasper coming very quickly at my face, which so happened to hold my finger, which so happened to be bleeding.

In the time it took for me to realize that I was in deep shit, I was suddenly flying as well. I then saw the…glass…table coming at me in slow motion with no means for me to stop myself from cutting myself. The last thing I heard before the glass shattering was me mumbling to myself that if I was a vampire, then the table would be afraid of me coming instead of the other way around. Then I heard the glass breaking, and I felt the disgusting feeling of my blood pouring all over my arm. I wrinkled my nose at the smell and the sight, and fainted.

_Later…_

I was on a table…or something, and Carlisle was pulling a needle through my arm. I didn't even try to look. Knew that would have been a one way ticket to faints-ville. I barely noticed the slight sting of the needle as it penetrated my arm again and again. Feeling awkward, I decided to fill the silence with the first thing that entered my head.

"What stinks?" Memorable, I know. Carlisle just smiled at me reassuringly.

"That would be the smell of the sealing gel." (AN: You know the stuff they spread on your skin when you get stitches? It's a yellowish gel. I don't know if it really smells or not, but that really was the first thing I thought of.) "It always smelled bad to me, but I never knew whether it smelled as bad to humans as it did to me. Interesting." he muttered, and continued stitching up my arm. I prayed to no one that he was almost done.

Apparently, he was. "All done, Bella. Just don't put any pressure on it, and take medication for the pain, but don't put any ice…or Edward…on it, okay?" I nodded. Suddenly, I was tired.

"Can I go home now? I'm really sleepy."

"Of course you can, Bella. Be sure to tell Charlie what happened." he said with a chuckle.

I laughed as well. "Okay, Carlisle. Maybe I should also tell him how old you really are too, hm?" I heard laughing from outside the house, followed by tiny Alice dancing in the room.

"How's Jasper? Is he okay?" she looked at me incredulously.

"Jasper's fine, Bella. Now tell Edward you're fine. He's been freaking out." A look crossed her face so fast I almost didn't catch it. It looked like…anger, and resentment. I've never known Alice to be either angry or resentful, so I shrugged it off and walked outside.

"Okay. Just let Jasper know I don't blame him at all." I really tried to force this point, because I didn't want Jasper feeling responsible. Alice just smiled and nodded.

Edward was pacing, and as soon as I walked out, he got that self loathing look again, and I grimaced. I inwardly smiled as I thought of the perfect way to get him to open up like I know he wont unless I force him to.

"Wanna see? It's gonna make an awesome scar. I can't wait."

He eyed me like I was crazy.

"Bella, did you take too much morphine or something? This is certainly not something to joke with. I almost got you killed!" he panicked.

"Well Mr. Optimism, can you stop your little tirade long enough to take the human home? Cuz she's pretty beat." I did my best to imitate his crooked smile. Epic Fail. He scooped me up without another word, but still with that Angel-esque frown on his face. (AN: Has anyone ever seen the episode of Angel where he was turned into a puppet? Think of that face with the perma-frown. For anyone who doesn't know, look up the Smile Time episode of Angel on Youtube. You'll see what I'm talking about.)

I must have fallen asleep in the car, because the next thing I remember was being carried into my house. Needless to say, Charlie freaked out asking questions. Once it was all cleared up, Edward brought me to my room and put my gently on the bed. And then the strangest thing happened.

He left.

I started freaking out, until I remembered that Charlie saw him come up here, so he couldn't possibly stay here without granting some suspicion. I relaxed a bit, but something still felt off. He hadn't told me he was coming right back like he usually did. I pushed that thought away and tried to change. I grunted in pain as my arm protested. I guess dressing is going to take a little more effort for a while. A few more grunts and groans, and I was somewhat comfortable in my cotton pajamas. I went downstairs and snuck a soda from the fridge. Nothing like grape soda to calm the nerves. And I was right. Instant comfort. I heard a thump from upstairs, and smiled at the thought of Edward upstairs. I tiptoed back upstairs without attracting attention. Score one for Bella. When I got to my room, I said aloud,

"Guess that makes up for my little trip on the stairs, huh Edward?" but he wasn't there. But…my window was open! That means he was at least here! I frowned. Why would he come deliberately when I was downstairs, and leave before I knew he was here? I took the bottle of pills on the mantle and swallowed them dry, suddenly not feeling like having grape soda anymore. I plopped down on the bed with an audible thump, favoring my left arm. I stared at the ceiling, wondering what was wring until I fell asleep at about 3 in the morning.

_In the Morning…_

I woke up very hot. It was so uncomfortable without my personal ice cube to cool me off every night. I looked at the grape soda on the mantle, which only reminded me of the awful feeling in my stomach last night and not wanting grape soda. I've never not wanted grape soda before, and I was kind of ticked that I still didn't want it. Seeing the bottle of pills only reminded me that my arm was killing me. After bitterly struggling to get ready for school, I saw that Edward chose that moment to show up in my driveway. I hadn't seen anything of Charlie, so I figured it must have been pretty late in the morning. I was right. I grabbed the pills off my mantle and put them into my bag before contemplating how I felt about Edward at that moment. I was pissed off no doubt, but I'm not sure that was Edward's fault. Shrugging, I walked over to his car smiling.

"How are you today? Not too moody, I hope." he looked at me with empty eyes.

"I'm fine. How's your arm?" I didn't like the way he was treating me already, and I'd only been with him for 30 seconds. This was going to be a long day.

"Fine." I said with a sigh.

The rest of the day was kind of annoying, especially because Alice wasn't there. I needed to ask her why Edward was being such a sour puss, and what was going to be the maximum damage.

You see, Edward had these moods all the time, though not to this extent. He would be particularly self-loathing about something for a while, then he would perk back up. Usually these moods had something to do with my safety or becoming a vampire or something else serious like that involving me. So you see why I had to find Alice.

But she wasn't there, and when I thought about it, Jasper's best option at this point wasn't to be around me just yet, and of course Alice would want to be there to comfort him every step of the way. Jasper knows I forgive him, I already told Alice that. Besides, it's not his fault for practically being a newborn. But this really wasn't the best time for Alice to go AWOL, either. There was nothing I could do, so I crossed my arms like a petulant child and pouted my way through the rest of the day. The most disturbing thing was that Edward didn't seem to notice me at all or say anything other than "how's your arm?" and that was getting annoying anyhow.

_A week passes, and Edward's mood doesn't get better._

Okay, this was just ridiculous. Edward has barely said anything to me lately, and by lately I mean in the last week. The last bit of emotion he showed was when I took those pictures with the camera Renee gave me, and that was…right…after…my…_birthday._ I snarled the word in my head.

_Is her seriously not over that yet? Something must be done._

That day when I got home, and I say I because seriously, Edward didn't even count as a person anymore. After going into the house,I told Charlie that I would be going for a walk with Edward and proceeded to almost stomp out of my house and into the forest. I knew he was behind me. My patience didn't last long, however. I turned around and he was right there. I looked into his eyes.

Nothing.

That really pissed me off.

"What's your problem, Edward? You've been as quiet as my shadow lately, and it's really starting to piss me off!" I could hear my voice rising in anger, annoyance, and mostly hurt.

(please note that some of the following are actual quotes from New Moon that I do NOT own)

"Bella, we're leaving." he looked up to gauge my reaction.

Well! That wasn't the explanation I was expecting.

"By we, you mean…"

"My family and myself."

My mouth made a wide o. All I could say was, "Why? Is this about my birthday? Edward, I've been through much worse, and it doesn't matter that your brother was the one who almost killed me. I forgive him. I never even blamed him for it."

He surprised me by getting angry. "You see that, Bella? That's the kind of attitude that isn't safe for you! You have to look out for yourself!"

I was still in shock. My eyes narrowed. "What's the real reason you're leaving me?"

"Bella…" he just looked at me. It seemed like he was thinking of a lie, until he said, "Bella, I'm not really interested in you anymore. I need a woman that really understands me, and you're just a child."

"I'm seventeen. I'm almost an adult," I protested before he interrupted me.

"Yes, and I am nearly one hundred and ten years old." there was no hint of any kind of lie in his voice or eyes anymore. My wall went up.

"Well, then. I guess you'd better catch up to your family. Just one question."

"Yes?" he seemed slightly surprised.

"Why leave Forks? If you wanted to break up with me, you could have without making your entire family leave. Most importantly, why did you take Alice from me?" the words were lifeless, and I could feel that my face was a cold as stone.

"I may not love you like a girlfriend anymore, but I still care for you safety. Jasper almost killed you, therefore he couldn't be around you, and so neither could Alice. If they were gone, then there was no reason for the rest of us to stay. It would have been…inconvenient."

I stood there with my mouth agape, trying to make sense of what he was saying. Was he really that cold hearted? Well I could be cold too.

"Alright then." My voice was way calmer than I was. He looked like he was going to say something else, but decided better of it.

"Of course, I'll always love you…"

"Save it. Just leave."

I looked into his eyes with all the hatred and resentment I could muster, and all I saw in his were hurt. Well, I didn't care. He was the one leaving me, and I didn't have any more reasons to be nice.

He turned away, and whispered, "Bye, Bella." and disappeared.

I stood there, not knowing what to do then. The first thing that came to mind was, 'Well, I guess I'm single again.' I turned around and walked back into my house, went upstairs to my room, locked the door, and cried myself to sleep.

*End of Chapter 1*

Well, that seemed like a good place to end. Questions? Comments? Thoughts?


	2. AN: About Chapter 2

**Okay, so I read chapter 2, and I decided it sucks. So I'm gonna write a new one. Forget everything you read in Chapter 2. It is no longer valid. The new Chapter should be up maybe today (December 3rd****) or on Sunday.**

**Sorry!**


	3. The real Chapter 2

DWND ch 2

_I turned around and walked into my house, went upstairs, and cried myself to sleep. _

I woke up the next morning hot and angrier than ever. I'd had a strange dream last night…

_Edward and I were in the woods where he dumped me, and he was laughing. At me. Oh hell no. _

"_What the hell are you laughing at you…you…sexually repressed bastard!"_

_He kept laughing. _

"_Stop laughing at me!"_

"_Or you'll what?" he said between laughs._

_I couldn't say anything. He had me there and he knew it, and so he began laughing harder and pointing at me. That stupid cry-when-I'm-angry thing came up even though it was a dream, and he mocked,_

"_What, are you going to cry? Poor little baby human Bella. You humans are pathetic. I don't know why I even spoke to you."_

_Now it killed me to admit this, but that hurt my feelings. To not only crack on me, but the entire species? And after all the time I spent with him. All he ever did for me was waste my time. I walked up to him and slapped him on the face as hard as I could. He didn't even flinch; and laughed right my face. _

"_You're even weaker than I thought." He said with a smirk, and snapped my wrist._

That was usually the part where I woke up. Screaming, mind you.

_Damn him. Damn him to the deepest pits of hell for this. _

I would always hold up my wrist in front of my face, just to make sure it wasn't really broken. It never was, but somehow I always had to check.

There was something off about my life now. Not saying that I miss Edward, but I have nothing to do now. I always spent all my time with the Cullens, I practically didn't have other friends. Besides Angela.

Ah, sweet Angela. No matter what, she was always the one that stuck by me when things got tough. She wouldn't abandon me now, would she?

***

When I got to school, everyone was staring at me. Noting the absence of Cullen, no doubt. He had faded so far from my mind so quickly that he was already on a last name basis with me. Pretty soon, I'd be down to pronouns.

Awesome.

What kept me going through all the stares and sneers and comments was how truly _over_ Cullen I was. I came to school, and did all my stuff, and I didn't care who talked about me or him or anything. I was the ice queen of 2009.

My bravado wore off when lunch time came. Why was lunch _always _the hardest time of the day when it came to deciding where to sit? It seemed that everyone else was as curious about the decision I would make on where to sit. Would I sit with my old friends? Or would I go to the table where the Cullens and I used to sit? Or would I get my lunch and sit in a bathroom stall to avoid contact?

_Ha, who am I kidding? Sit in the bathroom, I crack myself up._

Now the only awkward part I had to get through was getting there and sitting down. There's nothing that I hate more than that moment where you're walking towards someone and they see you coming and you just wait for them to get close enough to say something. The staring is awkward. But I had to be strong, and stand behind my decision all the way. I decided to skip the actual eating part, and get the sitting part over with.

I turned to my old table and started walking. They had all been watching me since I walked in the cafeteria, all with different looks. Mike was hopeful, something I'd have to squash before it became a nuisance. Lauren looked like she always had, a she-devil, this time with shorter hair. The others looked with pure curiosity and wonder, and the moment seemed to slow down. The distance between the table and I stretched out farther as I walked, and it seemed like I was never going to get there.

I saw Ben's face, mostly because he wasn't looking at me, but at Angela. Angela had the most beautiful smile on her face. There was no hint of deception or falsehood in that smile. She was truly happy to see that I was coming back, and that was what broke the illusion. I saw an available seat next to Lauren, and boldly took it. Luckily it was across from Angela, so it wasn't so bad. I pointedly spoke to all of them.

"Hey guys, how's it been?"

Everyone froze. Only Angela was unfazed.

"Great, Bella. How've you been?" everyone turned to stare at her. The general look said, _Are you crazy?_

"Great actually, since Cullen left."

Mike chimed in. "So it's true then? The Cullens really left town?"

I turned to him. "Yup. They're all gone. I do miss one of them though…" I said, just to play with them, especially Mike.

"Who, Edward?" he said in a childish voice.

I focused hard on deciding what I was going to say. "Uh, no I don't miss Edward. I miss Alice, my little pixie, and Emmett, he was almost a brother, and maybe Jasper, he was always so cute when he was brooding…which was all the time, but he had that boyish charm. And maybe I miss Rose…a little. Just a tiny bit. Okay, I miss almost all of them." I finished, feeling proud that I listed all of the Cullens to Alice except for Edward. Let him put that in his pipe and smoke it. My thoughts were interrupted by Angela pondering,

"I'll miss Alice too. She was growing on me in a sisterly way." Angela sighed theatrically.

"Isn't it _weird_ how _all _of the Cullens left when Edward _dumped _Bella?" screeched Lauren's evil-harpie-witch voice. No, she wasn't cool enough to be all of those things. She's just a nasally, annoying girl who didn't like someone else being the center of attention. And why did she have to enunciate every other word?

"_You_ wouldn't _know _anything about that, _would _you _Bella?_" she insisted. I decided she needed to be put in her place.

"_No _Lauren, I _wouldn't." _I said, mocking her voice, "_You _wouldn't happen to be making a _poor attempt _at trying to _embarrass_ me, thereby shielding _your own misery_ at the fact that I actually _went out_ with Edward and _you didn't_, _would _you?" I intoned.

That shut the bitch up. She had nothing to say, and that was the best thing I heard from her in my life.

"So, what have you all been up to lately?" I asked with actual interest.

And the process of rebuilding began, and I felt more and more like I belonged.

***

October

***

November

***

December

***

January

***

February

***

I had been accepted into the fold without any more back-sass from Lauren or anyone else. My grades were just as good as before, and teachers even noticed me paying attention to their lectures and knowing an occasional answer. They all seemed to agree that Cullen was actually a bad influence on me, something they had never considered before.

I had even begun to hang out with Jacob Black, who was an old friend from before.

Jacob was cool about almost everything. Well, everything I said anyway. I think he kind of had a crush on me. It was cute, but I wasn't looking for that right now. Yet.

One day while I was driving home, I decided to stop by Angela's house to chill until we saw a movie later that day. I began to think about Angela's loyalty to me, and how she hadn't even skipped a beat when I came back. I knew she would always be my best human friend, and I decided that if Alice ever came back, I might persuade her to let me tell Angela the secret. Ang would make a cool vampire.

I was almost there when I passed by a house with two rusty hunks of metal in front of them with a FOR FREE sign in front of them that had been faded from the rain.

I couldn't stop the smile that spread across my face then. I formulated a plan quicker than ever, and I found myself knocking on the house's door.

I saw a small kid, maybe about fourteen answer the door. He looked up at me in amazement. I blushed. I had become mature in more ways than one since Edward left. I had not only developed more, but I had more independence than anyone I knew. I was pretty used to guys hitting on me again, and I went on a date with a few of them just to humor them, but nothing serious never happened. Life was alright anyway, because I had developed a 'wherever the road takes me' view of the world. And today, the road had taken me to two motorcycles, and I decided that meant something.

The boy stated that he didn't care whether I took them for free or not. Obviously he'd never heard of holding out. I took the bikes on my truck, made a quick call to Angela's house telling her I'd be late, and made a detour to La Push.

La Push was the same as I'd remembered it. It had a Native American feel, and I felt something I hadn't felt since the Cullens left. Danger, and magic. I knew instantly that something was going to happen that would change my life. Well, good. I was starting to get bored.

I drove up to the Blacks' house, and Jacob ran out to greet me with the same cheesy grin I always saw on his face when I came. He grabbed me in a bear hug, and I theatrically faked choking sounds because he buried me alive in the muscle department.

"Jake! I need to breathe to survive. Unlike some of us, I can't handle so much muscle on my body. I'm fragile, you know." I said with a smirk as he put me down.

"Ah, that's just your way of telling me I'm hot. You know you want me." he said, flexing and posing for effect.

I smacked his arm and laughed. "If you're going to waste time being cocky, then I'm not going to tell you the surprise project I brought for us. I have to go to a movie with a friend later, so I can only stay for a little while."

"Okay, okay. What'd you bring me?" I laughed. He was such a child.

"Okay. You ready for this?" I announced, and I pulled the covering off the bikes with a flourish.

"Ta-dah! I present to you…motorcycles…cycles…cycles…cycles!" I said with a dramatic echo.

Jake appraised them, looking for what could be fixed on sight. He smirked at them.

"What did you do to these, destroy them?"

"Hey hey now! I found them this way. Don't accuse me of motorcycle torture. So can you fix them?" I asked eagerly. I really wanted something to do.

"Yeah, but it might take a while, and I would have to go to the dump and salvage parts, and maybe buy the rest…the thing is, I don't have the money for the last part." he frowned.

"Money is not issue, my friend. I've saved up quite a bit of money from the working, and now I finally have use for it." That wasn't a lie. After the Cullens left, I had been at a loss for what to do before my friends decided to include me in the loop again. And I still worked three days a week plus weekends, and that stored up quite a bit of hours, and money. I only went to the movies, and shopping never felt the same without Alice, so nothing ever really put a dent in my account. I was glad to finally have something to use it for.

"Cool. When can we start?"

"Well, I have to go out later today, but we can start…" Let's see, today was Wednesday, and I only worked Saturdays to Wednesdays, so I had some free time on the weekends and on Thursdays and Fridays. "…tomorrow. And then we can continue on Friday and the weekend afternoons, but I can't do Mondays through Wednesdays. That cool?"

"That's plenty of time." his eyes sparkled then faded. "Are you sure you'll want to spend all your free time with me?"

"Uh, duh Jake. Why not? You're my closest male friend, why wouldn't I want to spend time with you?" I said, sensing the serious direction the conversation was taking. Good. Jake and I needed to get all this awkwardness out anyway.

"I don't know, maybe you wouldn't want to be seen…I mean, people would assume…" he didn't finish, looking down the whole time.

"Jake, I know you like me, but I don't date anymore. It's just not my forte. Can we please, please be friends? I swear I'll try not to hurt you too much, I just wanna be your friend."

He looked up at me, into my eyes, and smiled. It was slightly pained, something I didn't want to see on his face at all. I ran into him and embraced him with all my might.

"We can be friends, can't we Jake?"

I heard the rumble of his voice. "Yeah, Bella, we can be friends. Just don't ditch me when I'm done fixing the bikes."

"Jake, I would never use you that way. I love you." I froze as the words came out. So did he. I mentally smacked myself.

_Superb thing to say, Bella. Tell him you wont date him, and then that you love him. Smart choice of words. _

"I love you too, Bella. You're my best friend."

I sighed in relief. So Jacob loved me as a friend. How arrogant of me, to assume that he loved me as a lover when he loved me as a friend.

_Stupid, stupid, stupid. _

We let go of each other, and set to work on getting the bikes in the garage and taking them apart.

***

A few weeks later, I'd completely forgotten about the 'I love you' thing. It was for the best anyway. Jake and I grew a lot closer, because I wasn't worrying about sending the wrong messages and having him mistake my friendliness for desire. I met his two boys, Quil and Embry. They were both jerks at first, but they're actually sweethearts when you get to know them. I began coming over almost every day, excluding only when I had work and made plans with other friends. The thing about my friends was that I had to remember not to relapse and forget all about them, especially Angela after how well she took me back after the Cullen incident. I was actually enjoying life, for once without the complications of love and relationships.

***

Soon after that, Jacob had called me at work to tell me to come down to La Push right away. Mrs. Newton said that I'd been doing such good work that she'd let me leave an hour early with pay. I thanked her and rushed out to my truck to meet Jacob. I finally had something to do.

I got to La Push, almost squealing in anticipation at what was to come. Jake sounded so excited, I bet the bikes were done. I felt like a child getting a Christmas present she'd always wanted.

Jake had the bikes under the same cover I'd first brought them here with, except this time they were on the ground. I was so excited, and he was grinning from ear to ear.

"Well, Bella, I present to you, you finished motorcycles!"

"Jacob, for being such an awesome guy about this, you get to pick which one is yours."

"Really? I can have one? Awesome."

I smiled at him as he appraised them both. One of them was a streamlined black, while the other was a deep navy blue.

"I guess I'll take the black one. It does have my namesake, after all. Plus it's a classic black Harley. You okay with that?"

"Totally, Jake. You are so awesome for this! I have to find some way to repay you for this."

"No, no, the bike itself is enough."

"You sure?"

"Totally. You wanna learn to ride this thing or what?" he said with a grin.

That sounded great. "Sure. Let's go…right now."

"Cool." he said with a finish, and he loaded both of the bikes into the back of my truck. I'd noticed the way he picked up them bikes. They almost looked like he thought they weren't heavy.

"Hey, Jake, do you work out or something, cuz you handled those bikes like they were made of paper."

"Naw. I just lift a lot of heavy things." he said with a blush.

It was that blush that made that ugly feeling of carefulness creep back into me. I thought we were over the whole 'he loves me but I love him like a brother only' thing. But I could see that I was just ignoring what was right in front of my face the whole time. Jacob had always loved me, and I had been so friendly to him since I first brought the bikes over.

What did he think I thought about him? Did he think I loved him, and was hiding it, or did he know that I still feel the same way as I did a month and a half ago? I hope it's the latter.

We drove up to the mountain where we would be practicing, and I saw a bunch of shirtless boys on a high cliff.

I whistled. "Look at that. They're all standing on the cliff. I wonder why their shirts are off. Jake, what are they doing?"

"Who?"

"Those boys over there on the cliff. The ones without shirts on." I said casually.

"Oh them? That's just Sam and his crew about to do some cliff diving. Show off's. They know no one usually jumps from that high."

"Are they a gang or something? They look like a gang." I said childishly

"Naw. They're just the patron saints of La Push. They think they run the place, and the thing that pisses me off is that all the elders act they _are_ all saints. It's really annoying."

I huffed, and watched with interest as they each leapt off the cliff gracefully, almost as if they knew people were watching them. And then the best idea hit me. More fun.

"Jake, do _you_ cliff dive?" I asked tentatively.

"Yeah, sometimes with Quil and Embry. Why?"

"Do you think...next time you happen to want to feel the urge to…jump off a cliff…maybe…you could…take me with you?" I asked carefully.

"You wanna go cliff diving?" he seemed more surprised than opposed to the idea, so I knew everything was all good.

"Yeah. It looks like fun. Can you and the guys take me? Pretty please?"

"Sure. But try sticking with one danger to your life at a time, Bella. You'll live longer."

"Sure, sure." I mimicked.

"Yeah, I definitely believe you." he said as we drove around the corner to the long road where we would be practicing.

Only the road wasn't empty.

A good fifty feet in front of us, I saw a woman standing in the middle of the road, with flaming red hair blowing in the wind.

My blood froze.

Victoria.

Shit.

* * *

Haha, and that's where I'm ending it! And you can't do a thing about it. I am soo sorry that I didn't stay true to my word and update last Sunday. I had a nasty case of writer's block, and I couldn't think of what would happen. It's actually the longest chapter i've ever written for any story, so i hope the wait was worth it.

Please Review! It keeps me going. And I solidly promise you all this time. Unless I am banned from the computer tomorrow, the next chapter should be up. If it isn't, you'll know why.

-Love Looney


	4. Chapter 3

**Looney: Guess who's back? **

**Okay, I have NO excuse for not updating for over a year. But as a way of begging for forgiveness, I'm writing an extra long chapter that's gonna cover a lot of ground. Hope you enjoy!**

**No, I don't own twilight.**

Chapter 3: Unexpected

_A good fifty feet in front of us, I saw a woman standing in the middle of the road, with flaming red hair blowing in the wind. _

_My blood froze. _

_Victoria._

Shit.

Why now? Why the hell now? I was just on the verge of completely being over everything remotely Cullen-esque! And what happens? Victoria comes out of the woodwork. Whatever. At least I wont have to deal with her later.

As expected, Jake freaked out.

Not as expected, he turned into a giant bear.

My eyes flew to the shape that used to be Jacob Black. All that was left in his place was a giant russet brown bear that was glaring down the road at Victoria.

Victoria was obviously confused, though she had nothing on me. I stared at him, or at least I thought it was him, and I looked at Victoria, back and forth between them, cursing my bad luck for putting me between a giant bear and a vampire.

_FML. _I thought, rolling my eyes at the horrid timing.

I had no idea what to do. After a bit of thinking, I remembered that Alice would see any decision I made, so she would see my predicament, and she might be able to save me.

I focused as if my life depended on it (clearly it did) and decided to try to inch away from the bear. Just because it might have been Jacob, doesn't mean that it wouldn't hurt me. I tried to be as smooth and non-attention-attracting as possible. I took one step away, and both the bear and Victoria turned at me, though I was more scared of the former than the latter.

I looked into the bear's eyes.

I saw nothing.

I knew that whatever this thing was, it wasn't Jacob. Hell, it could have eaten Jacob! Or maybe, just maybe he got away….Well, that would have meant that he left me, but it's for the best. In the meantime, I decided to play a trick on Pooh bear. I whipped my head at Victoria as fast as I could, and naturally, Pooh responded with the same gesture. The bear and Victoria stared at each other for five…ten…fifteen seconds before I decided to hightail it. Hopefully Jacob was far away by now.

I turned around and leaped on my motorcycle. I faintly remembered Jacob telling me about the parts of a motorcycle as he fixed them all by himself.

All by himself…oh God, I hope he's okay!

I kick started the engine and rode as fast as the thing would take me. I could hear no pursuit, so I guessed that the bear and Victoria were more trained on each other than me. I went straight through La Push, back to Jacob's house to see if he had gotten home.

I wasn't so lucky.

"What do you mean, he's not here? Where is he?" I wailed at Billy.

"Well, Bella, last time I saw him, he was with you. What happened?" he commanded.

"Well, we were going up to the cliffs, to…" I tried so hard to think of a lie, but Jacob could be in danger, "to ride motorcycles, and we saw…" I tried again. " we saw this thing in the distance, and then Jake was gone, and a huge bear thing was where he was. I guessed he'd run home before me, but now…" I trailed off. Where was my Jakie?

Billy interrupted my thoughts. "Bella, I think you should go home." he said in a new tone.

"Just go home? But Jacob is out there, all alone, and that bear thing…"

"Jacob is going to be fine. He knows the woods; he can take care of himself." Billy said confidently.

_Oh, hell no._ I wasn't going to have Billy letting his son get killed for something so stupid as pride. He was _my _Jakey, and _no one,_ not even Victoria was going to take him away from me.

I'd already been dumped once.

"Billy, I'm going to look for him. You can't stop me. As long as that…thing is out there with him, I wont go home." I looked hard into his eyes. There was something I wasn't getting. Some missing piece. Not being one for patience in situations, I asked outright.

"Billy, what are you keeping from me?"

His face looked surprised for a split second. That was all it took for me to figure out that Billy was hiding something from me, and it most likely had to do with Jake…

Let's see, what did I know?

1. Jacob is out there alone with Victoria and Pooh bear.

2. Billy isn't worried. Which means that Jacob has some kind of secret weapon, something that would help him defend himself. Also, there was

3. As soon as I mentioned the bear, Billy was fine.

So that means that Pooh bear was helping Jacob in some way…maybe? Maybe…maybe it's a Native American thing. Like one of their legends. Jacob did say that their ancestors were cool with the animals, though those were wolves…

Could that animal have been a wolf? Possibly. So that means that it…instinctively, maybe…is trying to help Jacob? That doesn't sound quite right.

_Anyhoo…Billy's not going to tell me, so I better go look for him myself. _

"You know what? Never mind. I'm just worried about Jake. I'm so sorry I accused you. I think I'll go home." I said as I turned to my bike.

" No problem, Bella. I'll call you when I see him."

_Yeah, like you were going to look. _

I rode in the forest on the trail and went back to the cliffs. My truck was there, and so was another horrific detail I'd missed: Jacob's bike was still there. That means…

"Oh, no." I whispered. I saw the path of destruction that Victoria and the bear…maybe wolf had caused during their inevitable fight. As I saw the broken trees and destroyed scenery, I was happy I missed it. The happiness was smothered by the rage I felt. Rage at Victoria for mucking things up and coming back for her petty revenge, as she was here no doubt to avenge James. Rage at Billy for being an ass and not telling me what the hell's going on, even though I know he knows and wont tell me. Most of all, rage at Edward.

Everything led back to him, huh?

If Edward had been a man and stayed here to face my wrath, then he would have been able to kill Victoria. Also, if he was a man last year, he would have killed her for helping James try to kill me. Lastly, if he was a man period, Victoria wouldn't be in my way, trying to kill Jacob.

Damn Edward to hell.

"You hear that, Alice? Damn Edward! I hope he's right there, reading your mind, so he can see how much I hate his ass!" I shouted into the sky.

The next thing I heard was the fighting, and then silence. I heard the cracking of bone, and I knew she was hurting Jacob.

"Victoria!" I screamed at the top of my lungs as I ran through the last of what would separate me from her.

"Victoria!" I screamed again as she lifted her foot from Jacob's broken leg. Strangely, it healed almost as soon as she'd broken it. She had a look of rage on her face as well, though it was closer to frustration than anger.

"Why wont he die?! I never knew werewolves were this strong. I have to get rid of him. I have to-" but she stopped as she saw me.

God, I was stupid. No surprise or trick up my sleeve or anything? I had a death wish. That was it. I secretly wanted to die. Stupid me.

"You." She said with malice as she was on me in a flash. Next thing I knew, her cold fingers were wrapped around my throat and I was standing on my tiptoes against a tree. I never took my eyes off Jacob. He looked okay, fine actually. He looked like he was in a fitful sleep. My eyes watered. Poor Jacob.

Cold fingers tighten around my throat.

"You. Tell me what this is. What's going on?" she murmured.

"You're killing my Jacob, that's what."

She smirked. "So that's the pup's name huh?"

"Pup? What are you talking about?" I said, trying to change the subject from her killing me or Jake.

"Don't play stupid! You humans were never good at lying anyway. I know this boy is a werewolf, but I want to know where he came from. Speak before I rips your jaw from your face." she breathed.

"What the…hell?" I said as the thoughts finally clicked into place. Billy being so nonchalant…the bear being exactly where Jacob was…the way it never attacked me…Pooh bear was Jake.

"Holy shit! Are you telling me that Jake was that…thing?" A bit over the top yes, but necessary.

"I told you not to play stupid. Now where did he come from?"

"How the hell should I know? I never knew anything else besides vampires existed. By the way, why are you trying to kill me? Shouldn't you be trying to kill Edward or something?" I said casually. She did something unexpected.

She freaking smelled my hair.

"What the…" I sputtered.

"No…Edward killed my James, and in return, I shall kill you, his precious Bella." she said, slowly running a sharp fang down my cheek. I started screaming. Venom hurt like a bitch!

"I'm not his anymore!" I managed to scream through the pain.

She stared at me in comprehension. "I know he hasn't been on you for a while, but it might be you trying to trick me. Can't have that now, can we?" she said as she ran the other fang into the same cheek, this time in the opposite direction, making a perfect x. The pain was intense, and I could feel the venom burning in me, trying to spread. Victoria started licking my cheek, and I decided that now was the time to act.

"No no! They're really gone. Edward…dumped me…a long time ago, and now I hate him almost as much as you do."

She stopped licking me. "Really? Prove it." she said, putting me on the ground.

And I told her the whole thing, from me and Edward first met, up until that very moment in time. Her eyes got really small when I mentioned the Edward killing James part, so I glossed over that and went right to the him leaving me and all of them being gone.

By the end of my tale, we were sitting across from each other, both of us cross-legged, like we were old friends having a girl-talk. It was an out of body experience.

"That doesn't make sense. Why would they fight so hard to protect you, then leave you right after?" she wasn't angry anymore, just confused.

"That's actually what I want to know. But I'm glad I didn't die. I am sorry for your loss, though. If I could help you kill Edward…" I regretted the idea as soon as it passed my lips. I didn't continue, observing her reaction.

"Please. How could you help me? That's insulting." She rolled her eyes. "Well, you're no fun anymore. I'm leaving." she stood up and turned to leave.

"Wait…" I said, freezing as she glared around at me. "I mean, if you're looking to try something new, then there's a clan up north that is vegetarian…I mean, if you want." I stammered.

She got a sad look on her face and said "No…but thanks anyway."

"Oh..." I mumbled awkwardly. "Well...I guess it's goodbye then. Oh yeah, if you ever run into the Cullens, tell Edward he can suck it." I finished, regaining my nerve.

Victoria chuckled. "I will. Goodbye, Bella."

And she tossed her flaming locks over her shoulder and disappeared.

I let out a sigh in relief. Were Victoria and I friends now? Weird. Jake'll get a good laugh out of...

Oh, shit. Jake!

I ran over to where he was still lying on the ground, not moving except for the rise and fall of his chest. At least he was breathing. I checked his vital signs, and he seemed to be fine. That didn't make me feel better, not one bit.

"Jake, wake up! I need you to tell me you're all right. I need you, Jake..."

He didn't move. Then I got angry.

"Oh, Jake, you better not be in a coma! That's too corny of a way to die, Jake, and I wont let you!" I screamed.

Then, Jacob snored.

_I'm over here having a spaz attack worrying over this guy, and he's taking a nap?! Oh, _hell_ no. _

I raised a hand and smacked Jake hard across the face in an attempt to wake him. He stopped breathing. I raised my hand to do it again, when a large brown hand grabbed my wrist. Feeling oddly reminiscent of my dream with Edward, I panicked, knowing that if Jakey snapped my wrist, I wouldn't wake up and find it fine.

Jake was up, all right, and glaring at me. Or rather, he was staring at me with such an intensity that it would have looked like a glare if he was smiling that goofy grin. How I missed that grin.

"Jake...?" that was all I got out before the crazy bastard kissed me.

This was no pg13 kiss either. He let go of my wrist and pulled on my neck to pull me closer to him, and jammed his mouth on mine.

I was flailing, my arms extended in shock. He sat up and pulled me into his lap, never breaking the kiss. I was crushed in his embrace, forced to sit there and _let him kiss me. _

Needless to say, I was furious. After the shock wore off, I started struggling to get him away from me. I pushed at him, at least trying to unlock my mouth from his so I could yell at him for kissing me.

Then, he pulled away from me with that same look on his face, like he was mad at _me_ for not going along with this crazy scheme. Then he did something that scared me shitless.

He actually growled at me.

And it wasn't a human-ish growl that sounds like someone clearing their throat. This was a true animalistic don't-mess-with-me growl. And it was scary.

Oh yeah, plus he can turn into Pooh bear. What a plus. If he changes here...with me in his arms...and his face on my face...Oh, God, I better start cooperating.

He was growling at me, for not kissing him back, no doubt. I glared the same glare back at him, wondering why my Jakey would do this to me. He knows how I feel, why would he threaten me like this?

Then, I realized that _this might not be the same Jakey as before._ I mean, he turned into Pooh-bear, who knows how messed up his mind is right now?

So I sighed, leaned forward, and plated one on him. His chest was rumbling, probably in satisfaction at my compliance. He twisted his hand into my hair, intent on keeping me there. I wasn't really into it, so I just wrapped my arms around his neck lazily and rode it out. He was bound to get bored some time, right?

Not right. He was still just as enthusiastic, if not getting more so. His other hand swept down to my lower back, keeping me as close as possible.

_Jeez, Jake. Possessive much?_

And he still kept on going. I was seriously getting bored with this, and then I heard growling.

My eyes whipped open to reveal, not one, not two, but FOUR other Pooh-bears surrounding us.

So of course, I screamed right into Jacob's mouth. He pulled away, though more slowly than me. In fact, he seemed unfazed by the giant creatures snarling and growling around us.

_Really, Bella? Motorcycles, Victoria, and FIVE Pooh-bears all in one day? You gotta get out less. _I thought, sighing at my wonderful luck today.

Jacob pushed me out of his lap, rather unceremoniously, actually, and pulled me behind him. Strangely, it reminded me of Edward. That thought made me mad. What, I couldn't protect myself anymore?

I looked at the Pooh-bears. Nope. I couldn't protect myself one bit. So I sat behind Jake and shut up.

Jake was snarling at the other Pooh-bears when I remembered that he was one of them. So maybe...they were people too? I decided to try something. I peeked my head around Jake's shoulder, and spoke loudly.

"Heeey guys, how's it goin? I see you've all managed to turn yourselves into giant Pooh-bears." I said stupidly. No one knew my nickname for them.

"I mean, uh..." I sighed. "Okay. Someone wanna tell me what's going on? Why does Jacob turn into a giant...well, whatever you guys are, and why the hell did he kiss me?" I finished, more than a little miffed at being left out.

For a second, there was silence. Then it looked like all of the Pooh-bears were laughing. At _me. _

_Oh, hell no. _

"Will someone tell me WHAT is so funny?!" I screamed in anger.

All the bears stopped laughing, and the black one turned around and walked behind the tree-line. I was confused. Why did it walk away so calmly? I'd have been pissed if some little girl yelled at me...

In the place where the black bear left, a very tall and very muscular man came back through, wearing nothing but jean shorts. His face still held the mirth of the bear's from before, so I guess this was him.

"Hi, there. Mind telling me what's up?" I said nonchalantly, starting to stand.

Jacob pulled me back down behind him, and growled at the approaching man. I sighed. "And why Jacob wont let me stand?" I drawled.

The man laughed. "You must be Bella. I'm Sam, the leader of this pack." he stated.

"Pack? Pack of what?" I asked.

"It would take far too long to explain, and it's getting dark, so I think we should go back to town before we explain." he said, and turned to Jacob.

"Jake," he said, "...go to sleep." and Jake fell to the ground in a heavy slumber. The way he said that command...there was something forceful in his voice, like Jake didn't have a choice.

_I'd better keep track of that for later. _I decided, and stood up, brushing my pants off. I took a good look at Sam while he was gathering up Jake. He looked strangely familiar, if only I could place where I've seen him before...

I didn't have time to think before Sam turned to me again and said,

"Go, get your bike and go to Jake's house. We'll meet you there."

I was going to ask him how they hell he knew I had a motorcycle, but he was gone, and Jake was gone with him. The rest of the bears...actually, they looked more like wolves to me...but anyway, they all left with him, leaving me alone in the now menacing forest.

I ran back to the road, and it didn't take long for me to find my navy blue bike. She really was a sweet little thing, nothing too over-the-top, but still sleek and dangerous in her own right. I almost wanted to name her, but she seemed too good for that.

I hopped on my bike an rode in the direction of Jake's house. Was Jake going to be okay? _I hope so..._

I rode past the usual La Push scenery, and I noticed that I hadn't been home for hours. I wonder if Charlie's worried? Well, I can't deal with that right now. I just have to make sure Jake is okay...Jake...who kissed me....why?

Why did Jake kiss me? I mean, he was not really acting like himself, and he was unconscious for a long time, and he was acting pretty weird when he woke up. Oh, I hope Jake's okay.

I breathed in the smell of the woods, the freshness of the earth, and for some reason I didn't want to leave. Why go back to the uncomfortable silence with Jacob now that he's kissed me, and why stay and face whatever Jacob's become.

For a second, I considered leaving.

But I sighed and sucked it up, because the answers to those questions is: I love Jake, so I have to stick with him through everything. I mean, he took me in when I broke up with Edward, and he built the bikes without my help and didn't ask for anything in return. So I would have to stay with him through this, and deal with him turning into a giant...crazy...kind of lusty...wolf.

I sighed again, for what seemed like the thousandth time today, and pulled into the Blacks' house. I was surprised to see that my truck was parked in front already, and Jacob's bike was in the garage. The house was already full when I got there. There were so many...large bodies in there, and I recognized Quil and Embry among them. They were all huddled in the living room around Jake, who was sitting on the couch looking aggravated. He looked normal now, so maybe things were better, right?

I walked into the house, and all eyes turned to me. Jacob spoke first.

"Bella." That's all he said.

I looked at him. What was I supposed to say to that? Things for me and Jake have gotten way to serious way too fast.

"Hey Jake, feeling better?" I said casually.

"Yeah. Bella, about before..."

"Jake," I said, cutting him off, "I don't know why you did that, and I'm not gonna lie, it was very confusing. I thought you knew how I felt!"

"Bella, I..."

"I'm not finished. I know you went through a lot in the last few hours. I know you kissed me without my permission. But I'm no Edward, so I'm not going to leave you because if it." I finished.

"Bella..." he said, standing up and striding to me, "Thank you." he said, and embraced me in a suffocating bear hug. It made me think of when things were simple, and it made me smile.

He let me go, and I walked over to the couch and sat down.

"So, what happened?" I said, looking at Sam since he seemed to be in charge.

"Bella, this is serious. You've seen what we are, and now you can't tell anyone. Not even Charlie." Sam said seriously.

"I know. Standard procedure for magical creatures such as yourself. Werewolves, right?"

"Yes. We descended from..."

"Jake already told me. Not just now or anything, but before when he thought it was all fake."

Sam's eyes widened. "You...already know?" he said, astonished, "Well, then do you know what happens when a wolf makes his first turn?"

"No. He just told me what you are, and where you came from."

"All right then." said a new voice that I recognized as Billy's.

"Billy...I knew you were in on this. You know, you need to lie better. I think I could teach you sometime." I laughed.

Billy chuckled. "Well, I knew there would be no point anyway. I saw the look in your eyes, Bella, I knew you wouldn't have given up without knowing the truth. You care about Jake too much for that. That's what makes this whole thing easier."

"What, me being in on the werewolf secret?"

Billy frowned. "No, you being his mate."

I stood up. "I'm Jake's mate?! I knew he had a crush on me, but I'm not his mate!" _That must be why he kissed me before, and why he was so protective. He thinks I'm his mate._

"You are, Bella," Billy said calmly, "He reacted as soon as he saw you in his human state. New wolves only react that way when they see their mates. It's true, he did like you before, but that only fueled his animal instincts to claim you."

I thought about that. It made sense when he said it, but that didn't make me happier about it.

"If it makes you feel better, he would have done the same thing the first time he saw you after he changed anyway, it just developed more because you've been around him so much lately." he said truthfully.

I sighed. "So, now what?"

"Jacob will have to leave with Sam and the rest of the pack to get used to being a wolf so he can control himself, especially around you." he replied.

"How long will that take?" I asked in worry.

"Oh, just a week or so, depending on how strong his blood is, and how strong his mind is."

I sighed. Two whole weeks of boredom and no Jake to alleviate it. Great.

"But it shouldn't take too long. Don't worry Bella, it's still Jacob in there." Quil cut in.

"Okay. So...when is he leaving?"

"Now."

"Oh..." I said, turning to Jake. "I guess I'll...see you later, Jakey. Don't take too long." He wrapped his arms around me, and I returned the hug forcefully, because I really am going to miss my friend.

"Thanks, Bella. For being so...understanding, after all this. I'll be back soon." he promised.

"You'd better be. God help you if I get bored." I said, punching him lightly in the arm.

He laughed, and said, "See you later, Bella."

"Bye, Jakey." I said smiling.

Sam interrupted the moment, saying "Bella, you should be getting home now. You've been gone for hours."

I scowled at the realization. "Well, crap then." I said, and breezed out the door as everyone laughed at my statement.

I almost walked to my bike and hopped on it to go home, but I remembered that Charlie never knew about it. I glanced longingly at my bike while walking to my truck; motorcycles were more my style than anything.

"Soon, my love. Soon we'll be together again." I whispered to my bike as I climbed into the truck. The monster started up noisily, and I missed the gentle hum of the bike as the loud chugging of my truck blocked my thoughts.

I pulled up to my house, and Charlie was asleep on the couch.

_Sweet, I don't have to explain myself. _I thought as i walked silently upstairs to my room. I showered and changed, and I laid in my bed, thinking about the day's events.

_Wait…_I thought. _Alice would have been able to see Victoria deciding to come in the first place. That means that she could have been there while it happened! I guess she really doesn't love me like I thought she did. I mean, I know her brother dumped me, but to let me die? That was low, even for a…a freaking bloodsucker!_

I hadn't imagined the magnitude of what I'd said. I had truly accepted the hating vampires thing that Jacob and the wolves had ingrained into their souls.

I guess I was truly done with bloodsuckers in my life.

Time for the werewolf saga.

*End*

**An: So, how'd you like that? Took me all day, so I hope you appreciate it! Now before you leave, go click that button down there, and leave me a review please. Whether it's about how I took so long to come back or what you think of the chapter or whatever, but I want to know what you guys think. Oh, also, I've change my name. I'm still Looney, but now it's ****-xXLooney-chanXx- Hope it doesn't confuse anyone!**


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